“The Dark Knight”, The Social Mood And Copywriting

The new Batman movie, “The Dark Knight” is a massive hit and looks like it could challenge “Titanic” as the biggest grossing movie of all time.

I went to see it yesterday and loved it. Best film I’ve seen all year. To paraphrase one reviewer “It’s visually stunning and works both as a conventional all-action blockbuster and as a psychological thriller”.

Here’s the trailer…

It’s also stirred up a bit of controversy in the blogosphere with some seeing it as an endorsement of George W. Bush and his actions in the Great War On Terror.

I wouldn’t completely go along with that. The movie is a somewhat complex morality tale but it draws on a more universal theme. That is, somewhat simplistically…

“Good people sleep peaceably in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf”

…but where do we draw the lines on what those “rough men” do?

This theme isn’t a new one in the movies, of course. The “Dirty Harry” and “Death Wish” series, among others, both dealt with the same sort of issues.

So, what’s all this got to do with copywriting? Plenty, as it happens.

As a copywriter, you need to be in tune with your audience. The great Clayton Makepeace (have I mentioned how much I love his “Two Hours To More Profitable Sales Copy”?) recommends that you immerse yourself in the popular culture. Clearly, with “The Dark Knight” being such as smash hit, it’s struck a chord with the public. What is it and what does it mean?

To offer a framework, let me point you in the direction of “Socionomics” and the work of Robert Prechter. Prechter is best known as an exponent of the Elliott Wave Theory for forecasting financial markets. I’m not going to go into that in detail here. For our purposes, what’s relevant is Prechter’s idea that events are largely driven by what he calls the “social mood” and that there are certain indicators that reflect the social mood.

The stock market is one such indicator. Others are popular movies and popular music (among others). You can read more about this idea in this paper “Negative Mood Themed Films” on the Socionomics web site.

Put simply, “dark” movies (such as Horror, Crime/Gangster, Disaster and “Noir”) being popular is a manifestation of a negative social mood.

And there’s no question that “The Dark Knight” is a dark movie (hey, it’s even in the title!).

Now, you could say that with all the economic turmoil going on around us, that this is no great insight.  However, if nothing else, it’s a confirmation of trends and a negative social mood.

So what are the implications for copy?  In general in this environment, people will be more concerned with protecting what they have, rather than wanting to “shoot for the moon”.  It will be more important then ever to demonstrate the value that your product or service offers people.

People will be less trusting, so again you need to prove credibility (and offer a powerful guarantee).

People will tend to pessimism rather than optimism.  “Blue Sky” appeals are less likely to be successful.

There’s an undercurrent of concern, maybe even fear.  Plus a distrust of our current leaders and politicians.  “Vigilante” movies often reflect a feeling among ordinary people that the formal authorities have let them down.

These are just some of the manifestations of a negative social mood.  I’m sure others will occur to you and you’ll be able to spot them when you research your market.

Am I suggesting that you should use appeals to “fear” and dark themes in your copy?  Not at all. Remember, even in “bad” times life goes on pretty much as normal for most people.  However, you must acknowledge the concerns of your audience and connect with them.  Always remember Robert Collier’s advice to “enter the existing conversation” that’s going on in the head of your prospect.

In the meantime, enjoy the movie!